ICN Statement of Solidarity with Nurses and Health Workers in the Middle East

The International Council of Nurses (ICN) expresses its deep solidarity with nurses and health care workers affected by the escalating violence across the Middle East and Gulf region.

ICN has been in contact with many of its National Nursing Associations across the region in recent days to offer support and hear directly from nurses about the challenges they are facing as the situation evolves. As part of its #NursesforPeace initiative, ICN is also launching a global photo action inviting nurses and nursing associations around the world to demonstrate their solidarity with colleagues affected by the crisis – details below.

Nurses are working in fear and uncertainty. They are caring for the injured, supporting families in distress and striving to keep essential services running. They are fulfilling their ethical duty to care, often at significant personal risk.

José Luis Cobos Serrano, President of the International Council of Nurses, said:

“As nurses, our commitment is always to life, dignity and care. Today, nurses across the Middle East are working in extremely challenging and dangerous conditions, yet they continue to care for the injured, support families in distress and sustain essential health services. They are fulfilling their professional and ethical duty, often at great personal risk.

‘International humanitarian law is clear. Health workers, patients and health facilities must be protected at all times. Medical neutrality is not optional. Attacks on health care are unlawful, indefensible and demand investigation and accountability.

‘We stand in full solidarity with our nursing colleagues and with the civilians whose lives are being devastated. Nurses are not combatants. They are caregivers. They must be able to do their work safely and with dignity.”

Dr Myrna Abi Abdallah Doumit, ICN Board Member for the Eastern Mediterranean Region, said:

Across the Eastern Mediterranean Region, nurses stand as pillars of humanity amid devastation and fear. They do not carry weapons—they carry hope. They heal the wounded, comfort the grieving, and hold together the fragile threads of life when everything else is breaking apart. Yet their courage should never be tested by war. No nurse should ever have to choose between saving lives and saving their own. Their safety, their dignity, and their mission to care must be protected at all costs. The nursing community of our region calls upon the world to uphold the sanctity of life, to stop the suffering, and to safeguard every health worker and every civilian caught in this storm. We, nurses of the Eastern Mediterranean Region, will not remain silent. We choose peace, we stand for humanity, and we demand the protection of those who protect life.”

Conflict harms individuals, families and communities. It damages health systems and leaves lasting physical and psychological scars.

International humanitarian law is unequivocal. Hospitals, clinics and ambulances must never be targeted or obstructed. Patients must never be denied care. Schools and other civilian infrastructure are protected under international law and must not be attacked.

Too often, these legal protections are ignored. When health care is attacked, humanity itself is diminished. Trust is broken. Health systems are weakened. Recovery becomes harder.

Through its Nurses for Peace campaign, ICN has consistently called for the protection of health workers and health services in every conflict.

ICN calls on all parties to comply fully with international humanitarian law, to protect health workers and facilities without exception, to safeguard civilians and to ensure safe and unimpeded humanitarian access. De-escalation and dialogue must be the priority.

ICN will continue to speak out clearly and firmly in defence of nurses, patients and the rule of international law.